Getting Smart Blinds Working with Your Home

The three layers of a smart blind

1. The motor inside the roller tube or track, powered by battery, solar or low-voltage wiring. See choosing a motor.
2. The connection. Shade motors talk over a low-power radio to their remote, and to your smart home system for app and voice control.
3. The control. Your phone app, voice assistant, wall keypad or whole-home system sends commands through that connection.

Works with the smart home you already have

Our motors work with all the major smart home systems and voice assistants: Apple Home and Siri, Google Home and Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa, and Samsung SmartThings. You don't need to switch systems or buy into a new brand to add shades. We pair them with what you use, name them and group them by room, so "Alexa, close the living room shades" or "Hey Siri, open the bedroom shades" works from the first day.

Most homes need nothing extra. Depending on your system, app and voice control may run through a smart speaker or small hub you already own. We check what you have at the free visit and set everything up at installation.

Whole-home systems: Control4, Crestron and Savant

If your home runs on a whole-home automation system, your shades can join it. We integrate motorized shades and curtains so they sit alongside your lighting, audio and climate. One keypad button or touch-screen scene can dim the lights, lower the shades and start a movie. We coordinate with your integrator, or set it up with you, during installation.

Scenes and schedules worth setting up

• Wake up: bedroom shades open gently at your alarm time.
• Afternoon heat: west-facing shades lower at 2 p.m. from June to September.
• Sunset: front-of-house shades close at sunset for privacy, and the time follows the season automatically.
• Movie night: one command closes the living room and dims the lights.
• Away: shades open and close on a normal-looking schedule while you travel.

Naming tips for voice control

Give every shade a short, unique name and put each one in the right room in your app: "Office shade", "Kitchen left", "Kitchen right". Then group them by room so "close the living room shades" works without listing each one. We name and group everything with you at installation.

What happens when the internet goes out

The handheld remote and wall switches talk to the motors directly, so they keep working with no internet at all, and schedules stored in the motors or the hub keep running. Voice assistants and away-from-home control come back when the internet does.

Our smart motors

We install smart motors with 2 Nm of torque that work with all the major smart home systems: Apple Home, Google Home, Amazon Alexa and Samsung SmartThings. For Control4, Crestron and Savant homes we also install low-voltage hardwired systems. See our smart motors and Control4 motorized shades.

Programming, covered for three years

We program every motor at installation: top and bottom limits, favourite positions, remotes, groups, scenes and smart home pairing. That programming, and the motor itself, is covered by our full 3-year in-house warranty.

Common questions

Do smart blinds need Wi-Fi?

Not for everyday use. The remote and wall switches talk to the motors directly. App and voice control run through your smart home system, which uses your home Wi-Fi.

Which smart home systems do your motors work with?

All the major ones: Apple Home, Google Home, Amazon Alexa and Samsung SmartThings, plus whole-home systems such as Control4, Crestron and Savant.

Can you add shades to our existing Control4, Crestron or Savant system?

Yes. We integrate motorized shades and curtains with the major whole-home systems so they work with your existing keypads and scenes.

What if I change my phone or Wi-Fi router?

Your shades keep working on their remotes and schedules. If the app or hub needs pairing again, call us and we'll help you get it reconnected.